Wanted Kona Man Arrested and Charged with Drug and Firearm Offenses

A wanted Kona man was arrested Wednesday, March 18, after police found a firearm and drugs inside his vehicle.

Thirty-eight year-old Michael Ventrella, who was wanted for questioning in an unrelated firearm and drug investigation, was spotted and identified at a gas station on Kuakini Highway in Kona by Kona police.

Police found a firearm and .5 grams of a white powder suspected to be cocaine, along with $127 in cash inside Ventrella’s 2012 Jeep.  His passenger was 36-year-old Waiola Corcoran of Kealakekua.  She was arrested along with Ventrella, and taken to the Kona cellblock for further investigation.  The jeep was towed for further investigation at the police station.

After searching the Jeep, detectives recovered an unregistered 9-mm handgun with eight rounds of ammunition, 1 gram of suspected methamphetamine, 1.1 grams of suspected marijuana, three unprescribed pharmaceutical pills, and meth and intravenous narcotic paraphernalia.

On Thursday afternoon, March 19, Ventrella was charged with multiple firearm and drug offenses.  His bail was set at $93,000.

His passenger, Corcoran, was charged with promoting a harmful drug.  Her bail was set at $500.

Both posted bail and were released from custody on Thursday evening.

The unrelated case Ventrella was wanted for is still under investigation.